15/03/2017 Look North (North East and Cumbria)

Hello and welcome to Wednesday's Look North.

A 16-year-old boy dies in a car crash following a police chase.

Meanwhile police appeal for witnesses after a 26-year-old

woman is killed in an accident in Cumbria.

Approved - plans for 2000 new homes on Green Belt land

Back on track - a ?23 million repair project on a flood-damaged railway

In football, we'll round up all last night's action.

And we'll meet the Argentinian on the verge of crowning his 17

years in the North East with a trip to Wembley.

First tonight, a 16-year-old boy has been killed in a car

crash following a police chase in Middlesbrough.

The boy, named locally as Brandon Morris,

was a passenger in the car, which was being followed

by the police close to Albert Park last night.

Four people have been arrested on suspicion of causing death

by dangerous driving and the case has been referred

to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

Stuart Whincup is live at the scene of the crash now for us.

Brandon's friends and family have been coming all day to place cards,

flowers and letters along the wall. It goes back around 20 yards. People

we have been speaking to understandably say they are in

complete shock and all describe a popular young boy who was always

smiling. A fantastic friend

who was always happy. That's how 16-year-old

Brandon Morris has been described. Someone who the tributes

say was greatly loved He died after the car he was

travelling in crashed during a police chase on this

road in Middlesbrough. He was one of the happiest

lads I've ever known. He was respectful,

he was sound, he was one of my best mates

and I could trust him with anything and he'd always have my back

no matter what. Now I still don't

believe that he's gone. Brandon had been to passenger

in a Ford Focus car that was being The lights and sirens were on and

the car was only followed a short distance when it got to this point.

The Ford Focus veered to the junction and crashed with another

vehicle. Brandon suffered serious injuries and was taken to a local

hospital where he died a short time later. He was a top lad, a good kid,

he was loved on the estate and he was always happy, every time I saw

him he was dead jolly and stuff. He made everybody laugh. Respectful,

sound, always had everybody's back. It's a shock that he's gone. Police

say three people were taken to Middlesbrough's James Cook Hospital

after the crash. They and 29-year-old man have now all been on

suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving. I go find me page

has been set up to raise money for the family and help with fuel costs.

-- Go Fund Me page. Because the youngster was killed

following a police case, the event has been referred to the Independent

Police Complaints Commission. Meanwile a young woman has died

after her car was involved in an accident with a digger

being towed on a trailer in Cumbria. It happened near

the village of Shap on the A6. The police are appealing

for anyone who may have seen Mark McAlindon has sent us this

report from the scene. The A6 remains an important

route linking Penrith Police were called to a two-vehicle

road traffic collision. A van and a trailer

travelling north on the A6 were in a collision with a car

that was travelling south. Unfortunately a member of the public

has lost their life at the scene. It is still the very early stages

of this investigation. Collision investigators

are on the scene at the moment, It's still too early

to say what has happened. Later the police confirmed

that the dead driver was a 26-year-old woman

from the Penrith area. The need to know exactly

what happened here was more important than rushing

to reopen the road. It's now afternoon and the police

are still hoping to get this road The fact that it's been closed

since about half past eight this morning illustrates the difficulties

involved with these Recovery vehicles have now moved

some of the vans that were here before but the motorist's

car is still being worked We do need time for a road

traffic collision. We have one chance at the scene

here to gather all the evidence, which is why we bring the collision

investigation unit in and we close the road to preserve

the evidence at the scene, but also for the safety of

the personnel working at the scene, We only get this one chance

and we do keep the road closed for quite a long time but we ask,

due to the tragic circumstances, that the public bear with us

and allow us to do our job. Anybody who saw a Citroen car and

a trailer pulled by a Mercedes van in the area this morning is asked

to contact the police. It's thought a cannabis farm

was inside a terraced house in Sunderland

which was destroyed by fire. It broke out in Cooper

Street in the Roker area It's thought no-one

was in the property at the time. Two men who raised the alarm

are being praised for their actions by fire crews who attended

the scene. Plans for more than 2000

new homes on Green Belt land in Northumberland have been approved

by councillors in Morpeth. One of the proposals,

for a so-called Garden Village on the edge of Ponteland,

has been especially The landowner, Lugano

Property Group, says it'll be a forward-thinking,

modern project attracting But protestors say it's too big,

and will affect the whole Gerry Jackson is live

at County Hall in Morpeth tonight. This has caused a storm. New housing

and where it goes is one of the biggest issues facing us. Add green

belt land and the debate becomes that much more animated and that is

what has happened at Ponteland, where this plant for a Garden

village of 2000 homes was approved today. Also approved, a plan around

the village for 400 other homes. Both were given provisional planning

permission today and a lot of people are not happy.

It was the foresight of our forefathers that gave us the brain

belt. To stop the unchecked urban sprawl, they said. But what if the

betterment looked like this? Lugano Property Group bought the land some

ten years ago on the green belt and now it wants to build something like

this, he mixed and it says Imogen at a development where quarter of the

houses would be classed as affordable.

It is a seductive vision but many current residence will not be

swayed. They are looking to increase the population by nearly double. We

will be completely surrounded by other people. And you don't like

that? Absolutely not. The development says there is Pete and

demand for housing like this by young families and commuters into

Tyneside. -- patented demand. For its location and the impact it would

have on this village where we live, it is too dramatic and not in any

scale. But at a time where we keep being told there has never been a

greater need for more housing there is a wider question here. How

sacrosanct should our green belt the? It should be completely

sacrosanct as long as there isn't a very good reason. There is no need

to build on any of the Sistine green belt because we have enough space is

already that are Brownfield sites to satisfy the need we have in our

region. Despite the presence of many objectors at County Hall the scheme

was given outline approval by councillors today. It will have its

own school, shops, leisure facilities. This scheme has the

opportunity to be all real economic driver for the North East. Part of

the reason this has been so controversial is that around

Ponteland there is the application for 400 more homes and another

application for a new leisure and sports complex and two new schools,

or on green belt land, also given outline planning approval today. The

word outline is important is it could be amended or even overturned

at a later date, including perhaps at a public enquiry. But today the

chairman of the planning committee said it is important to all of my --

all of us to remember that all of our homes were on a greenfield once.

Under what circumstances do you delete green belt from the map? It

is a debate that will continue here. Health bosses on Teesside say

they'll continue to hire staff from the European Union,

even as Britain begins The South Tees NHS Foundation Trust

says it currently needs to fill Over the past two years it's

recruited 34 nurses from overseas, and most of those have come

from EU countries. Is it all right if I check

your blood pressure? Roxanne Signea has always dreamed

of working for the NHS. 18 months ago this staff nurse

swapped Romania for Middlesbrough. I really enjoy Middlesbrough,

it's a really nice area to live because it's really quiet,

so this is what I'm looking for. Even I've been in London and I've

visited quite a lot of England There is a chronic lack

of nurses in the NHS. Many Trusts are using videos

like this one to try Overseas staff are helping

to ease the problem. For hospitals like this one,

recruiting nurses from overseas, especially from the European Union,

is absolutely crucial. There are more than 100 posts

available here that can't be filled As Britain begins to negotiate

its way out of the European Union, what role will that play

in the nurses that it can I honestly think it's too early

to tell but we will need to keep considering overseas

recruitment for the short We're always on recruitment

initiatives, looking at different ways to access nurse training,

so it is too early to tell. Liviu is one of 34 overseas nurses

employed by South Tees He hopes Brexit

won't affect his job. I hope to be the same

after the Brexit, to have the same rights and that it will not

affect our rights. Roxanna is more relaxed

about the issue. This is not going to affect me

because they already told me that my position is not

going to be affected. So if for the English people it's

better to be out of the Brexit, It's taken 13 months,

cost ?23 million and needed But finally work to fully

reopen the Settle-Carlisle The line at Armathwaite -

between Carlisle and Penrith - was badly damaged in 2015

after flooding caused The line will officially reopen

at the end of this month with a visit from the Flying

Scotsman. The track is back in place

and soon trains will be too. This is the final push

in a year-long effort to reinstate services on this Victorian line

after it was overcome by a landslip. We just hadn't seen a slip of that

extent and it was moving hour Obviously we were concerned of how

much movement was happening. The site at Eden Brows is difficult

to get to, it's next to a Site of Scientific Interest and before

work could even begin thousands of tonnes

of debris had to be removed. That was one of our first

challenges, really, how to get here. We've put in over a mile

of access roads to get here. The challenging side of it is just

the scale of it, really. We've had a massive

piling operation. It's stuff that we do

as a contractor every day but it's The train line sits 70 metres

above the River Eden. To keep it in position

a retaining wall's been built and the new track has been laid

on a more solid foundation. This is where the half

a million tonne landslide To stop that happening again

the track is now built on a 6000-tonne concrete slab,

and to keep that slab in place are 226 steel pins drilled right

into the sandstone bedrock. The project team are confident

the design here will survive any The improvements here should

last at least 120 years. But for now the focus is on the next

two weeks and the eventual It feels fantastic. I don't know how

it will feel on the day. We have been through 13 years of hard work,

it has been so challenging, and we are almost there.

Before the official opening by the Flying Scotsman

at the end of this month, test journeys will be taken to make

sure drivers are familiar with the new track here -

a crucial update to a much-loved Cumbrian rail route.

Unemployment in the North East rose in the three month s to January.

Unemployment in the North East rose in the three months to January.

The total was up by 4000 to 88,000 - that's 6.8% of the workforce.

In Cumbria nearly 5000 people claimed jobseekers'

allowance in February - a rise of more than 700 on January.

And North Yorkshire also saw a rise, with just over 5000 people claiming

jobseekers' allowance - around 500 more than

However, one sector is providing some good employment news.

The craft brewery industry - made up of small independents - is thriving.

Our business correspondent, Ian Reeve, reports.

His small Teesside brewery, a craft brewery in the jargon,

is in a sector that has seen phenomenal growth.

There's definitely a new kind of desire for different beers,

different flavours, alternatives to what was previously

before, and just kind of a going against the mould.

We get some opening up in old schools, in old windmills,

and it's just kind of ads that character and that story and just

adds more to the beer, because it came from a local brewery

The business is just seven months old but has helped new craft brewery

Last year saw 520 new craft breweries open in the UK,

Ten new breweries are currently opening each week.

There are already about 50 small brewers in the North East alone.

And the breweries are slowly adding to the employment tally.

In spite of today's rise in unemployment in the North East,

these small ventures are creating jobs.

Michael has been taken on here as a full-time salesman,

part of a workforce that could hit double figures.

The brewery is growing gradually and hopefully within the next couple

of years we will be...what we've currently got downstairs will be

maxed out at 100% and we can look at expanding into more brews per week.

Small brewers like this are also increasingly drivers of wealth,

as bigger brewers eye them up as acquisition targets.

The small Camden Town Brewery in London was snapped up by ABInbev

What the big players want is the near 9% share

of the country's beer sales that craft brewers take.

So, jobs, big numbers, sales, a sector that is not just froth.

Cultural events in County Durham have brought in an estimat ed

Cultural events in County Durham have brought in an estimated

A report to Durham County Council has recommended the authority

continues to support and invest in internationally acclaimed events

like Lumiere and Kynren, as well as community-based arts projects.

And also today, Durham Cathedral was named National

Heritage Site of the Year by Countryfile Magazine readers.

Ingredients that have made Durham an international destination

for cultural activities, bringing visitors and their cash

as well as a strong sense of community.

I think one of the clear demonstrations is how willing

Almost 10% of the population of Durham are now volunteering

in some capacity, and one of the ways to do it is to be

involved with Kynren, the Brass Festival.

If you walk around you see the people now in the T-shirts that

give you helpful advice and support, get you to the right

events at the right time, and I think it's a fabulous way

for people who maybe aren't as artistic, and I'm certainly not,

but it's a great way to be part of what's going on.

Today Durham County Council compared its investment

in entertainment to how much money was made as a result.

The county's top-performing cultural event

in 2015 was Lumiere, which was held here, in Durham.

Now, the council says in that year it invested almost ?1 million

on its four most lucrative festivals, but the boost

to the economy was almost 12 times that, at an estimated ?11.7 million.

In Spennymoor today most people thought the investment was worth it.

I think it would be very boring if they didn't.

I think it would be a case of, that would just add to the doom

and gloom, and I think it's nice to have a bit of escapism.

I think it brings lots more people to the town and the area.

They should try and improve the street and the shopping area

rather than spend it on events that people just don't go to round here.

Yes, it is worth spending some money.

Thankfully I'm not a county councillor and I don't have

The council says it plans to keep on with its ambitious

Some great North East cultural news I'm sure in sport as well!

Not a bad set of results last night - in League Two Carlisle

managed to stop the rot, while Hartlepool won their first

A draw for Gateshead keeps them in the National League play-off

zone, and it's advantage York City after the first leg

Lincoln City have been famous for their cup exploits this season,

reaching the quarterfinals of the FA Cup before being knocked out

by Arsenal, and it was the Imps who took the lead at

Bootham Crescent through a Lee Angol penalty.

But after the break Vadaine Oliver equalised

for the Minstermen with a header into the bottom corner.

Lincoln piled on the pressure but York gave as good as they got

and were rewarded in the 69th minute - Aidan Connolly with

the all-important deflection to give Gary Mills' side the advantage

going into Saturday's second leg at Sincil Bank.

In the National League, Gateshead's six-match winning run

came to an end at Macclesfield but they remain in

Defender Manny Smith broke the dealdlock for Gateshead

in the 75th minute after former Pools keeper Scott Flinders

had initially saved Paddy McLaughlin's effort.

But John McCombe's header rescued a point for the home side.

In League Two, Carlisle ended a run of four straight defeats

in a goalless draw with Luton, the game held up for ten minutes

when Luton defender Dan Potts suffered a head injury.

And Hartlepool moved nine points clear of the relegation zone

after winning away from home for the first time

since early October - Michael Woods scoring the only goal

of the game at Cambridge, who went down to ten men

when Max Clark was sent off for a late tackle

So Gateshead could be on their way to Wembley,

York are almost there - and so, too, are South Shields.

On Saturday they'll defend a 2-1 lead from the first leg

of their FA Vase semifinal with Coleshill Town,

And if they reach the national stadium, it'll be a great

way to crown the career of an Argentinian who's made

the North East his home for the past 17 years.

Twice in the space of six weeks, he was on the brink

But twice Mick McCarthy's Black Cats fell at the last hurdle -

to Crystal Palace in the Championship play-offs,

and to Millwall in an FA Cup semifinal at Old Trafford.

For South Shields' former Sunderland AND Middlesbrough star, Julio Arca,

It will be good to get there but it would be good to win. To get there

and lose the final would be really disappointing but we have to go

step-by-step. I always say the first step is to win on Saturday and if

that happens we concentrate on whatever comes after.

South Shields go into Saturday's game looking for the 24th win in a

row but if they end with a draw their fans won't be too bothered

because all that have to do to make Wednesday is a void e-fit. We will

not park the bus, will have a packed house here on Saturday and we will

take the game to the opposition. -- to make Wembley is a void defeat.

Arca and co were just eight minutes away from going out

of the competition to the holders, Morpeth, in round four.

But just as Town went 4-2 ahead, the lights went

out at Mariners' Park - and Shields won the

Always in this competition you need a bit of luck and we have had. You

have to make your own luck as well. We are where we are because we have

worked hard. And where they could be soon

is at Wembley Stadium. And good luck to them. Now it's time

for a look at the weather, and spring ties are out, boys.

It has felt springlike the last few days. A bit cooler as we head

towards the weekend. Look at my's weather picture.

You know what they say about red sky at morning. In the next few days we

will notice a bit of a change, more rain at times, the wind picking up a

bit and it will feel a bit colder through the next days and into the

weekend. It is fairly quiet at the minute, try this evening. The cloud

will tend to spill in from the west through the night. A bit of poor

visibility over the high ground. Enough cloud to bring a bit of rain

and drizzle and the parts of Cumbria. Eastern areas should stay

dry through the night. Temperatures not colder than six or 7 degrees.

Tomorrow, mostly dry start for the East. There we will see the best of

the brightness. Some rain further west, some of its spelling eastwards

through the day. Some quite sustained rain through the latter

part of the afternoon am a bit of sleep over the hills, but by

tea-time drier, brighter, fresher weather following on. Highs around

11 degrees, gusty south-westerly wind turning westerly and

north-westerly by the end of the day. We have been talking about the

cooler change towards the end of the week. It is these weather fronts

coming in from the West through Friday and into the weekend. They

will bring spells of rain, not raining all the time but heavy rain

at times. A lot of lines in the charts so gusty winds as well,

tending to come from a Westerly and north-westerly or action so it will

feel a bit colder than it has done the last few days. Friday sees a lot

of cloud, any early brightness fading quickly. Bringing rain to

most places. Temperatures in single figures so noticeably cooler in the

rain on Friday. Into the weekend, Saturday, we will see rain at times,

some dry spells, maybe a bit of brightness from time to time.

Temperatures recover slightly but with the cloud and rain probably not

feeling as warm as 12. Sunday, the numbers are in double figures that

there will be some rain at times and a risk, gusty south-westerly wind.

-- brisk. That is not so great. The newborn

lambs in the fields, they don't like Lorraine, do they?

'The UK has voted to leave the European Union